In the midst of an enduring cost of living crisis and within the backdrop of a continually shifting political landscape, there has never a more important time for great leadership. Academy trust CEOs find themselves at the forefront of this dynamic environment, and the role continues to evolve as trust leaders navigate and respond to an ever-changing context. This year’s #BeingTheCEO Survey Report 2023 sheds light on the key themes shaping the experiences of CEOs in this current landscape, their priorities for the role and their organisations going forward, and their reflections on a job that is unlike any other.
The survey indicates growing levels of experience amongst trust CEOs, with almost half of survey respondents having now had over five years in their current role, showing a shift towards seasoned leadership. This is an encouraging statistic when we consider the importance of longevity and sustainability in leadership. The second generation of Chief Executives has also now firmly arrived, making up over half of the CEOs who engaged with the survey. However, as with last year, the vast majority of Chief Executives (93%) are in their first ever CEO role.
Notably, for the first time, the majority of respondents have indicated a clear view that having another professional background – beyond teaching – isn’t a barrier to taking on the role of academy trust CEO. This is a real shift from our very first survey of CEOs in 2020 when sixty percent of those surveyed were firmly of the view that it was necessary to have been a teacher in order to be an academy trust CEO. Survey respondents also indicated that they believe that the next generation of trust CEOs are almost as likely to come from the wider public sector as they will from the education sector.
Trust growth remains a top priority for CEOs for the year ahead, however, most CEOs do not expect to have more than twenty schools in three years’ time. Indeed, over three quarters of CEOs expect that their trusts will likely have fewer than 20 schools in three years’ time, with almost a third anticipating leading trusts with ten schools or fewer. The emphasis on manageable sizes possibly signals a shift towards more focused and sustainable growth strategies, fostering a culture of quality over quantity.
CEOs continue to highlight the cost of living crisis as a significant challenge impacting upon their trusts. While rising staffing costs and high energy bills present an ongoing challenge for the operational running and sustainability of trusts, CEOs also acknowledge the profound impact of the crisis on families. Most notably, the cost of living crisis is cited by CEOs as causing anxiety amongst pupils and families as a result of tighter household finances, and hindering students’ preparedness for the school day. The sector faces the imperative to address these challenges collectively as far as it is possible to do so, prioritising financial sustainability and community wellbeing.
It is clear that recruitment and retention (particularly of teachers) has also become an even greater challenge for the sector over the past twelve to eighteen months, and it has now become the top concern for trust CEOs, with 68% believing it will be a challenge for trusts to recruit and retain high quality staff moving forward – a crucial element of any successful organisation. On the other hand, CEOs see trust growth as less of a challenge than they did in previous years (though they do see the potential of changes in government policy on trusts as an issue).
Sources of support for CEOs remain consistent with findings from previous years, with CEOs continuing to gain most of their support from facilitated leadership networks (such as those delivered by Forum Strategy), colleagues, and coaches and/or mentors. This demonstrates the vital importance and continued value for CEOs of learning from others, both in facilitated and informal ways.
With over forty percent of CEOs who chose to indicate their future plans stating that they plan to retire at some point in the next five years, succession planning remains a concern, especially given that more than half of respondents said that their trust did not have a succession planning strategy in place for the CEO role, and a further eleven percent were unsure whether one existed. In fact, only one third of respondents were confident that a succession plan was in place. This presents a major risk to the sector and we strongly recommend all boards and CEOs review their current situation regarding CEO succession and ensure that a potential succession plan is in place. Indeed, this is crucial to the long-term success of both individual trusts and the wider education system.
Rachael Gacs, December 2023.
Forum Strategy Members can download a copy of the report by clicking the button below
Being The CEO 2023
You can view additional case studies for Being The CEO 2023:
Dr Sam Parrett – CEO, London and South East Education Group
Brendan Loughran – CEO, Great Academies Education Trust
Cathy Barr – CEO, The Shared Learning Trust
Soumick Dey – CEO, The Collegiate Trust
You can read the reflections of Sir Steve Lancashire here